25: Common Future’s Rodney Foxworth: Shifting Capital to Shift Power
Common Future is a mission-driven non-profit organization that has diverted nearly $300 million into marginalized communities through grants and low-barrier loans since 2001. And they just received a game-changing gift from philanthropist Mackenzie Scott. It was a pleasure to chat with CEO Rodney Foxworth on the precipice of this new chapter for Common Future. We spoke about his plans for building up this BIPOC-led organization to close the racial wealth gap in America, how his own experiences with racism inform this work, and how he and his team are building a powerful network of “wealth-holders” and “wealth-builders” to create lasting change.
14: Square Roots’ Tobias Peggs Is Using Tech To Build A Better Food System
Our current food system is unsustainable. Luckily people like Tobias Peggs are re-engineering how food is grown and distributed in ways that are better for people and the planet. Tobias’ company, Square Roots, uses real time data and machine learning to create the right climate conditions for growing produce in refurbished shipping containers situated near local retailers, which drastically reduces waste and carbon emissions. In this episode of Lead With We, Tobias and I chat about how his experience working within Walmart led to his idea for Square Roots, the incredible power of tech in agriculture, creating the next generation of farmers, his purpose-driven approach to business and more.
13: Interface’s Erin Meezan: Taking Sustainability From “Why” to “How”
The modular flooring company Interface has one of the most forward-thinking sustainability visions in the building industry and the private sector in general. Interface’s late founder, Ray Anderson, started the company on an aggressive sustainability path over 20 years ago, and it’s up to Chief Sustainability Officer Erin Meezan to continue and build upon his legacy. In this episode of Lead With We, Erin and I spoke about going beyond the “do-no-harm” approach to sustainability and actually reinvigorating the planet by building a regenerative business model through partnerships, biomimicry, shared industry tools and more. When it comes to climate, the timelines we’re working against can be daunting, but I left my conversation with Erin feeling truly inspired. I hope you will too.